Daniel Flynn

Professor Emeritus

Organization:

West Virginia University School of Medicine

Department:

Microbiology, Immunology & Cell Biology

Classification:

Faculty

Daniel Flynn, Ph.D. has an extensive background as a researcher, research administrator, educator, and entrepreneur, with expertise in the field of cancer cell biology. He draws upon these varied experiences in his role as Of Counsel with WittKieffer, supporting the recruitment of research leaders as well as CEOs, provosts, deans, department chairs, and other senior academic medicine executives. 
Daniel was an NIH-funded research scientist for 20 years, published 70 scientific reports, working in the fields of virology, cancer cell biology, and breast cancer invasion, and held major federal funding with programmatic research grants as a principal investigator ($40M total). He served on NIH study sections for 14 years, as well as serving on several national and regional committees for the NIH, NSF, AAMC, VA, and statewide committees. 

As an administrator, Daniel has held the positions of Department Chair, Research Dean, and Vice President of Research at academic medical centers and universities. He was part of a team that founded and established The Commonwealth Medical College (now known as The Geisinger Medical College).

As Vice President of Research at Florida Atlantic University for nearly a decade, Daniel implemented programs that led to an increase in annual research expenditures from $23M to $95M. In this capacity, he led efforts to transition FAU toward R1 designation, which was achieved in 2024. As VPR, he oversaw and led entrepreneurship programs, technology transfer, research compliance, animal quarters, research accounting, sponsored programs, and federal government engagement on Capitol Hill. Daniel led efforts to establish research cooperative agreements with International Universities in Israel and England, consulted with AAAS to assist universities in Saudi Arabia to develop technology transfer offices.  

Daniel was a Fulbright Scholar in Entrepreneurship, Commercialization of Research, Economic Development and Academic Partnerships with French universities (Paris, Nantes, Angier) in 2022.  He has also been honored by his alma mater, University of Maryland, with a research award for distinguished alumni. 

Daniel was the scientific founder of a biotech company called Protea Biosciences that had a successful IPO, existed for 17 years, and employed 50 people before being acquired. He served as a founding member and on the board of BioArkive, a San Diego-based biotech company, and facilitated a successful M&A exit when it was acquired by Immuneering, Inc. 

Daniel obtained his B.S. from the University of Maryland, College Park (Microbiology), PhD from North Carolina State University (Virology), and post-doctoral fellow at the University of Virginia Cancer Center. 

Daniel currently serves on the board of the S. Florida Fulbright Association, and is an Associate Editor for Technology & Innovation, the journal of the National Academy of Inventors.  He is a consultant with the executive search firm, WittKieffer, Inc., and assists on executive level recruitment in the area of academic medicine.

In his personal time, Daniel enjoys researching and writing books on the intersection of colonial American History and Genealogy. Daniel speaks Spanish at an intermediate level and he and his wife enjoy spending time in Ecuador, South America.